wine brined grilled chicken

Never eat dry flavorless chicken again. With my Wine Brined Grilled Chicken recipe boneless skinless chicken breasts magically become super flavorful and juicy! The trick is soaking them in a salt and wine brine before grilling. And they’re gluten free!

Have you ever brined chicken? If not, I’m just going to say it, you are missing out! Brining may sound intimidating, or messy, or best left to the professionals, but I want to assure you that it is really not hard at all. Plus it makes simple grilled chicken breast so incredibly juicy. So far from boring! You’ll wonder why you waited so long to try it. Forealz, there is nothing to be afraid of.

Brine Q and A

What is Brine? Simply put, brine is a salt water solution that chicken, other poultry or meat soak in before cooking. Often brine is made with sugar too. Brines are also commonly flavored with juices, herbs and spices for added flavor. Additionally brine is used to preserve jarred foods, like olives and is used in smoking and curing meats to prevent spoilage.

How is a brine different from a marinade? They are not as intensely strong as a marinade, and don’t usually have acidic elements added to them. Marinades usually only effect the outer most layers of protein while brine actually works deeper into the meat.

What does Brine do to chicken? Soaking chicken in brine before grilling it makes it juicy and flavorful. For a more technical description you can read this Fine Cooking article here. Basically, the salt solution soaks into the chicken, and binds to it, making it more juicy before it is cooked. The salt denatures the proteins and attaches water to the protein, which makes it juicier.

How long do I brine the chicken? The raw chicken sits in the brine for a relatively long time (24 hours in this recipe) and the salt and flavor is able to really permeate the chicken. For larger poultry or for bone-in meat you can leave it in for even longer. Just take note that this is a relatively weak brine in todays recipe, so the chicken breasts can be in the solution for longer. Stronger (quick) brines work in as little as two to four hours.

Wine Brine

This brine today is a little different than a basic brine because I added a bottle of white wine to it. I made it for the Recipe Redux theme of cooking with alcohol. (Please, scroll below to see the other great recipes in this month’s Redux!) Here was my thinking, wine and other alcohols apparently makes food taste better. Or at least that’s what Sara Moulton said at IACP a few years ago. It like bonds to our taste receptors and makes it so that you can taste the other flavors in the food. Or at least that is what I remember her saying… something like that. So after experimenting with this wine brine, and loving the heck out of the results, it is my guess that the brine forced the alcohol into the chicken. I don’t know for sure, this is pure conjecture, but I do know that the resulting juicy as heck chicken is so incredibly good. I kept thinking that it was like the winey, briney cousin of marinade in a way.

The first night we had it with a sautéed mushrooms. Oh, my goodness! Love! Love! Love! I love the way the rosemary in the brine comes through with all of these savory flavors. And if you really want to hit a complete dinner home run serve it with The Best Homemade Potato Salad by Meaningful Eats. It’s gluten free too!

Now that I know wine is so magical in brine, I want to try it with other meats and wines. What do you think would be a good combination?

Boneless Skinless Chicken breast stays moist, juicy and flavorful when it is grilled because it is brined in a simple rosemary and wine brine solution first.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons salt

2 cup boiling water

3 cups cold white wine, preferably fruity

1 cup ice

4 sprigs rosemary

1 tablespoon pepper corns

2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breast

Instructions

Combine salt and boiling water in a heat proof bowl or measuring cup, and stir until the salt is dissolved. Pour wine and ice into a large resealable bag or a deep bowl. Add hot salt mixture. Add rosemary and peppercorns. Agitate mixture until completely cool. Add chicken. Seal bag and set in a bowl, or cover bowl if using. Refriegrate chicken 18 to 24 hours.

I have heard of “brined chicken” before, but I have been too much of a wimp to try it – you make it sound so easy – I must say your chicken looks GORGEOUS! So plump and juicy! This is my first time stumbling onto your site and I sure am glad to have met you on here – you do have the coolest job! 🙂

And I yours Shashi. So glad to know about your website too. That is one of the many reason the Redux is so great. Yes yes, the brine is no big deal .Give it a whirl!Katie recently posted…caper vinaigrette

That is such a big compliment Diane. Thank you! I was nervous getting ready to take these pics, but then they came together so quickly. you never know when something is goign to play nice for the camera I guess.Katie recently posted…blueberry almond tart

Thank you Rebecca. I agree that chicken can be so hard. Every time I try to do chicken breasts I am reminded that a single serving can look so strange. I didn’t even try this time, and just went straight for the platter. I was so surprised these pics came out better than I hoped.Katie recently posted…gluten free peanut butter cookie buttons

I appreciate your post so much! Brining is an easy step to take to enhance meats and such, but few people do it (I’ve skipped it plenty of time – oops!). Your take on this month’s challenge looks amazing, and makes me want to fire up our grill!

My first brining experience was a whole dang turkey, and that was an undertaking. Simply because the space needed and finding the equipment was harder. These boneless skinless chicken breasts are a whole lot easier, and a better place to start.Katie recently posted…creamy blue cheese and walnut coleslaw

So glad to hear it Joel. I think you’ll be happy with the results. I sure was and am inspired to try different combos of different meats, alcohols and spices or herbs.Katie recently posted…gluten free peanut butter cookie buttons

I’ve been meaning to start trying brines for my chicken but didn’t know where to start..this was informative and a great recipe. This may be my first go at it! Thanks 🙂 EvaEva recently posted…Love and Beer Soaked Beans

oh em geee this chicken! Gosh it looks so juicy I want to eat it though the screen! I am definatly pinning this and making it sometime this weekend! I am checking out your other chicken recipes too, love all the ingredients and simplicity of this though!!

Thank you Selena. I am so humbled by your enthusiasm for this recipe. Hope you enjoy it. {sidenote: the Island Chicken Marinade is on the Best of Healthy Seasonal Recipes list for a reason, I’d say it is my favorite recipe on this website… just sayin’ that should be a contender too 😉 }Katie recently posted…caper vinaigrette

i love brined poultry, however i usually reserve it for thanksgiving turkey and never have i used wine. this looks delicious and i’m sure that extra effort makes a “plain chicken breast” out of this world!gretchen recently posted…Deconstructed Vanilla Dark & Stormy

I have to admit I have yet to brine anything at all. I keep promising myself to do it with the turkey at Thanksgiving but always seem to run out of time. This is a great way to get started and I love the addition of wine. Thanks for a great recipe, Katie!Robyn recently posted…My Writing Process Blog Tour

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Comment

Name *

Email *

Website

twitter (@username)

you MUST enable javascript to be able to comment

hungry? search here!

Search for:

Welcome!

Hi! I am Katie and I am glad you're here. Welcome to my Vermont kitchen. I am a classically trained chef, former food stylist and also a reformed dieter. Today, I believe no food should be off limits. Here on my food blog, you'll find hundreds of easy weeknight dinners, simple seasonal vegetable recipes and intuitive eating tips. If you've got seasonal produce and you're wondering what to do with it, or you're just ready to say goodbye to dieting, then we're going to be besties in like one minute! Take a look around, have a bite to eat and let's hang out!